Improvements in ecosystem services from investments in natural capital

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 352; no. 6292; pp. 1455 - 1459
• Main Authors: Ouyang, Zhiyun, Zheng, Hua, Xiao, Yi, Polasky, Stephen, Liu, Jianguo, Xu, Weihua, Wang, Qiao, Zhang, Lu, Xiao, Yang, Rao, Enming, Jiang, Ling, Lu, Fei, Wang, Xiaoke, Yang, Guangbin, Gong, Shihan, Wu, Bingfang, Zeng, Yuan, Yang, Wu, Daily, Gretchen C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Association for the Advancement of Science 17.06.2016; The American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Subjects: Air quality; Assessments; Biodiversity; Carbon capture and storage; Carbon Sequestration; China; Conservation; Economic Development; Ecosystem assessment; Ecosystem degradation; Ecosystem services; Ecosystems; Environmental changes; Environmental policy; Environmental Restoration and Remediation - economics; Floods - economics; Food production; Food Supply - economics; Foods; Habitats; Imports; Investments; Land degradation; Natural resources; Policy; Retention; Soil; Soil (material)
• ISSN: 0036-8075; 1095-9203; 1095-9203
• DOI: 10.1126/science.aaf2295

In response to ecosystem degradation from rapid economic development, China began investing heavily in protecting and restoring natural capital starting in 2000. We report on China's first national ecosystem assessment (2000–2010), designed to quantify and help manage change in ecosystem services, including food production, carbon sequestration, soil retention, sandstorm prevention, water retention, flood mitigation, and provision of habitat for biodiversity. Overall, ecosystem services improved from 2000 to 2010, apart from habitat provision. China's national conservation policies contributed significantly to the increases in those ecosystem services.